A multitude of outdoor cookers have been created, presumably in hopes of improving the culinary quality and/or the ease of the cooking. For example, the following patents disclose various apparatuses and methods of cooking food in a device.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,924,845 of Johnson relates to a solid fuel cooker comprising upper and lower paraboloid-shaped members. The inner surface of the upper member (cover) focuses both radiant energy and convective heat around the item to be cooked situated in the upper portion of the apparatus. The upper portion of the cooker also includes a vent and a cap that serves both as a cover and as a measuring device for lighter fluid. The lower member (receptacle) houses the heating source. This invention provides means for concentrating the flow of air in an upward motion through the vent located at the top of the cooker.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,404,864 of Kent, Jr. relates to a portable outdoor cooking system which includes a combustion tube that houses an elongate fire chamber surrounding adjustable flaps which control the tube's intake and outflow of air. Food is placed across the upper opening of the tube for receiving the outflow of heat from the tube.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,649,477 of Lingwood relates to an outdoor cooking device comprising two or more heat sources located at the bottom portion of the device, means for supporting the food to be cooked above the heat sources, and a baffle between the food and the heat source so as to prevent drippings from the food from falling onto the heat source (thereby avoiding “flame-up”).
U.S. Pat. No. 5,687,704 of Lerch, et al. relates to a portable grill having upper and lower conical-shaped inverted housings. The upper housing includes a grilling section supporting a grate for supporting charcoal or other solid fuel. The lower conical-shaped housing acts as a receptacle. The apertures are positioned in such a way as to provide convective-type heat transfer for cooking.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,752,497 of Combs, et al. relates to a portable outdoor cooking assembly utilizing a flue and damper mechanism.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,797,386 of Orr relates to a portable cooking device containing an open top and a burner housing located at the bottom portion of the device. A cooking grate is disposed on top of the burner housing and can be adjusted for obtaining two different cooking heights.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,823,174 of Andress relates to a portable cooking device containing an L-shaped open body, the bottom portion of which includes a grate for holding food, while the rear portion contains a vertically arranged fire chamber.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,842,463 of Hall relates to a portable camp stove having a fuel support grate positioned at the bottom of a combustion-chamber. Fuel is added to the chamber from the top and air is drawn into the chamber through a ring of intake apertures.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,095,130 of Faraj relates to a grill having horizontal shelves positioned along sidewalls for holding charcoal vertically along the sides in order to surround the item being cooked.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,138,661 of Cooper relates to a portable cooking stove comprising a bowl-shaped grate and a supporting column. The bowl is designed to hold burning wood or coal and includes holes for allowing air to pass through the bottom of the bowl to combust the coals. A cooking apparatus, such as a skillet, can be rested on the upper edge of the bowl for cooking.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,213,006 of Reardon relates to an outdoor portable grill containing a heat source at a bottom portion thereof, a cooking grate at the top portion and a heat-funnel positioned between the heat source and cooking grate.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,289,795 of McLemore, et al. relates to a cooking apparatus having a base pan for the heating element, a main body element located in the middle of the apparatus for containing the food to be cooked, and a cover supported by the base pan.
The just-described patents disclose many different cooker/grill arrangements. Each of the preceding arrangements has a heat source, in some cases a flame, which is directly exposed to the food. It can be appreciated that this type of direct-heat cooking can cause the food to dry out, as well as risk over-charring, flame-ups, or outright burning of the food. Moreover when the food piece is in the same basic container as the fuel, the container cannot be sealed as the fuel needs an open container to allow for oxygen for burning of the fuel, which as discussed, allows the food item to more quickly lose moisture and dry out.
Therefore, there yet is a need for a cooking apparatus and system that allows for the cooking of food outdoors without the flame or heat source being directly exposed to the food to be cooked. It is to the provision of such an apparatus that the present invention is primarily directed.